In Iraq, millions of voters took part Sunday in an election to form the country’s new national assembly. It was the first contested election in Iraq in a half century. Iraqi election officials initially put the turnout at 72%. But it emerged later the actual turnout was closer to 57 percent. An estimated 8 million of the country’s 14 million eligible voters took part. In the Kurdish area, turnout was reported to be over 90 percent but in certain Sunni areas the polls never even opened. The final results are not expected for another 10 days but preliminary results could be released today. In Baghdad pollworkers began counting ballots Sunday night but needed to do so by candlelight due to ongoing electricity outages.